Give your garden a spring boost

PENNY POPKEN

Published 4:00 am, Wednesday, April 7, 1999

AFTER A wet and freezing winter, our gardens are finally showing signs of new life. It's tempting to sit back and enjoy the transformation, but there's important work to be done - namely, providing nutrients to help fuel all that new growth.

Winter rains may bring spring flowers, but they also tend to leach nutrients from the soil. By feeding plants now, you're replenishing those lost nutrients and giving plants a spring boost of energy.

Don Ellis, horticulturalist at the Elizabeth Gamble Garden Center in Palo Alto, has been busy feeding plants during the last few weeks. He offers the following suggestions to encourage healthy spring growth in your garden.

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Roses: "I look at roses as heavy feeders," says Ellis.

"I've already given them my first dose of fertilizer."

By combining Epsom salts - which promote new cane growth - with a balanced fertilizer to encourage overall growth, Ellis expects to produce a dazzling spring display in rose gardens.

Not only will flower production be enhanced, but Ellis believes that encouraging the overall health of his plants helps ward off diseases that are common to roses.

"I want to keep them at their optimum. I want the plants to be as healthy as they can be," he says.

This feeding regimen will continue every four to six weeks through the spring and summer. Rather than relying upon a calendar, however, Ellis looks to the plants themselves.

"I really depend on the plants to tell me when they need fertilizer," he says. "If something's looking stressed, I'll fertilize it. I wait for the plant to tell me, rather than getting on a schedule."

Annuals: Violas, pansies, poppies and other annual displays at the Elizabeth Gamble gardens benefit from regular feeding, too. Ellis offers his annual beds a feeding of liquid fertilizer (20-20-20) every few weeks in spring to keep them in top form.

"They really get a nice boost from that," he observes.

This regular spring feeding is in addition to fertilizer added to the soil at the time of planting: "When I amend the beds, I do add a slow release (38-0-0) fertilizer."

Shrubs and trees: Most of the shrubs and trees at the Elizabeth Gamble gardens are well-established, so rather than feeding them with a balanced fertilizer, as one would younger specimens, Ellis simply mulches the plants with compost.

By digging compost a few inches into the soil around these plants - or simply applying compost as a top dressing - Ellis achieves several objectives.

"The compost slowly helps build up the soil, and water retention is better," he explains. "It looks good, too."

Azaleas, rhododendrons and camellias: All three have similar feeding requirements. Ellis fed them a special mix in early March, along with a top dressing of compost, and will follow up with another feeding after they bloom.

Ellis chooses to use a locally produced fertilizer called Oliver Mix (4-5-3) that was created by Howard Oliver, a Peninsula expert on camellias, rhododendrons and azaleas. You can order Oliver Mix from Romeo Packing in Half Moon Bay, (650) 728-3393.

"After they bloom, I will come in and give them something a little higher in phosphorous," he says. "The plants use up a lot of phosphorous to bloom."

Lawns: "I fertilized these the first part of March," says Ellis, who opted for a food (24-6-3) that is high in nitrogen. "It's going to last three to four months."

Though Ellis does use some commercial fertilizers, his goal is eventually to rely solely on organics such as alfalfa, blood and bone meals.

"I think it helps create a soil that's more conducive to plant growth," he says.

Other spring tasks: As Ellis has been feeding his plants, he's also been battling a bumper crop of slugs and snails. He's reluctant to use baits because of the number of dogs and children who pass through the gardens, so he relies instead on hand-picking and copper bands around potted plants.

"I'm willing to put up with some of the damage," he says.

"The copper bands on the plants have worked really well for me."

Dig This is a weekly column for Bay Area gardeners by rotating authors including Penny Popken, North Bay contributor who writes twice a month. &lt;